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TRP: Hansel and Larkin (Sail)
Izzy at 10:47 AM The Sugar Glider, on the open ocean. The top deck. The ocean, Hansel thought, could go fuck itself. He was stuck sailing this damn ship because despite the fact that he kept thinking of them as his crew, none of these people knew what they were doing with it. He'd taught Sugar what he could while they were still in port, and Jonn -- for whatever good that had done -- and Roddy when he was paying attention, but none of them were sailors. So he was fucking stuck here, fingers tapping a nervous beat on the wheel, eyes casting from side to side. They were barely out to sea, he told himself. It was sunny. Everything would be fine. Of course, they would reach the Sanctuary at some point, and then there would be new problems, but it was fine. Everything would be fine. Jen at 10:55 AM For many years of her childhood, Larkin had dreamed about going out to sea with her dad. Great fantasies of the both of them on deck of a pirate ship, skipping across the waves towards adventure. The reality of sailing, she found, was rather boring. She hadn't ever sailed out on a ship before and no fucking clue what to do on deck. She knew there was a shit ton of work to do at any time - but what that was she had no idea. All she could do was sit around and wait until someone with a plan pointed at her and gave her something to do she couldn't mess up too bad. No one had pointed her in hours. She sat on the railing, back resting against the rigging, and switched between watching the sea and watching Hansel on the wheel. The sea looked calm but the half-orc somehow didn't.(edited) Izzy at 11:06 AM Kheman's kid was nearby. That didn't help. She was going to be a problem -- well, she wasn't the problem, he was, but either way. He tried to not look at her, fingers drumming on the wheel more urgently. Actually, maybe she could help with this. Her father was a perfectly competent sailor. Maybe he'd taught her a few things, before -- well. "Hey, kid." He pretended he didn't know her full name, and the pet name Kheman had for her, and her birthday because they'd celebrated it at sea. He tried to still his fingers. "Larkin. C'mere." He tapped the wheel purposefully. "You want a turn?" Jen at 11:12 AM "Huh?" Larkin looked over when she heard her name. Hansel was lgesturing at her. She considered, then gave him a wry smile. "Sure, if you want us all to sink." Nonetheless, she hopped down from the railing and walked over and up the stairs to the wheel. Izzy at 11:17 AM "Nah, it's easy." He backed away from the wheel to give her room, keeping one hand on it. "The secret's to just not turn it towards the coast." Now he had to make some excuse to get away. Get below decks and lay down and forget where they were and where they were going. Instead he found himself looking at the kid -- she did kind of look like Kheman, despite the horns and everything. Had he never taken her out sailing? Seemed like a shame. Maybe he'd still have a chance. Shit, this was a moment Kheman should have had with her, not him. Fucking anyone but him. Jen at 11:26 AM The wheel was huge and it almost reached to her chin. She took it, felt the strain on it and looked out over the ship and into the distance. And in this moment, despite all that had happened and the uncertain future ahead, it made Larkin feel... at peace. There was nothing in front or behind them than the line of the horizon and it was easy to pretend nothing else existed but that ship. She grinned, despite the dire thoughts that had poisoned her mood for days. Then a larger wave hit the ship and the wheel jumped in her hands. "Oh, damn!" She only caught it with Hansel's help and quickly stepped back. "You better keep it." Izzy at 11:31 AM Hansel grabbed for the wheel and Larkin at the same time, stabilizing them both. Shit. All right, maybe she was a little small for this. Then he was stuck here. His grip on the wheel tightened, but he kept his voice level. "No problem. You get used to it. You can try again later, if you want." Jen at 11:37 AM "Thanks, but I don't expect I'll ever steer a ship again." The truth of this was kind of saddening and Larkin's thought began turning in their previous gloomy circles again. She walked the few paces to the railing and stood leaning against it, looking out across the water once more. "Hey," she said after a few minutes of silence. "I just realized... you and this Haeth guy, this Mishka, you have a history, right? Went out to sea together?" Izzy at 11:40 AM He looked away awkwardly, feeling like he should reassure her about sailing but not sure if she meant that she wanted to. She'd looked happy, for a moment, there. None of them had looked all that happy the past few days. Then she had to go and ask about Mishka, and he tensed. "Yeah. He was my captain. Eight years." Jen at 11:48 AM She whistled. "Long time that. Must've been pretty hard for you, that..." she stopped when she saw how tense Hansel had become. Right. Probably a bad time to talk about this. "Sorry, I don't wanna pry into that. Am not going to. It's just, a few days ago I learned my dad was also on a ship with Mishka. He's... " she stopped again when she realized just how weird that sounded. Like she hadn't known what her own father was doing for a living at all. She dropped her gaze to her fingers and began digging out the dirt under her nails. "Uhm, anyway. I just thought maybe you've met him. His name is Kheman. Tall, black hair. Calisham type." Izzy at 11:54 AM He could lie. That would be the easiest thing. Nope, never heard of him. But that would just make things worse later, and wouldn't make much sense besides -- it'd fall apart at the lightest questioning. Fuckin' Mishka could come up with something, no doubt, but Hansel winced and nodded. "Kheman Basha, yeah?" Like there'd be another Kheman around. "Yeah. He was on our ship." The kid talked like she barely knew him. Such were the children of pirates, he guessed. Was he supposed to tell her he was dead? Would it kinder to admit that he was alive? Shit. Easier to just not say anything else at all. Jen at 11:58 AM "Did Mishka ever... say anything about him? Or maybe about his brother?" Izzy at 12:00 PM He glanced her way. "Mishka and I haven't really talked in a couple years." Kind of the truth. Had Mishka ... told her? Something? Jen at 12:10 PM "Oh yeah. You two aren't exactly on good footing, huh. With this poisoning your son thing and all that shit recently." She sighed and thought about leaving it at that. But there was something about Hansel that made her want to say more. To say things she normally wouldn't express. Some sense that he would... understand and not judge. "Pa never took me sailing," she said. "I always wished he would, but..." she shrugged. "I'm not mad at him, though. I still... " she trailed off. Izzy at 12:21 PM He drummed his fingers on the wheel. Shit. Shit shit shit shit shit. He had to say something, but he didn't want Larkin to like him. He didn't want to do anything that would make her feel positively towards him in any way. She shouldn't. It would make things harder. And it was something worse than horribly dishonest to let her think he was just some person -- someone who didn't know things she should know. But he had to say something. Poor kid. Kheman should've done better, but he should have too. "I never took Jonn sailing, either. It's, uh -- it's difficult. I mean, you can't take a kid onto a pirate ship." He paused. "There's always time, though." Jen at 12:34 PM "Hm. Maybe." Larkin kind of wished it were true but not knowing what had happened to her father and what state she would find him in - if at all - she had her doubts. "Or maybe not. I'll have to wait and see until we're at the Sanctuary. My dad's actually there, you know. That's why I'm coming with you." She finally gave up trying to clean her nails and instead watched Hansel on the wheel. "I wouldn't have left the city if it wasn't for him, but..." Haeth's face came up in her mind again, smirking at her over a cinnamon bun, hurling fire at her with black eyes. She snarled and her voice grew colder. "Something happened to my dad and your darling ex-husband knows of it. Gonna find out what, then go cut some throats." Izzy at 12:43 PM Fuck, then she did know. Some of it, at least. Not everything Goro knew, for some reason -- Mishka had probably thought he was doing Hansel a favor by not giving her all the information. A bigger favor would have been to not fucking tell Goro, either. He couldn't make himself act surprised, so he acted like he wasn't that interested, instead. "Huh. Whatever happened to him -- I'm sure he's being taken care of, if he's at the Sanctuary. He'll be fine." He hesitated. "And I'm sure Mishka had nothing to do with it. If that's what you're thinking." Jen at 12:46 PM Larkin gave him a sideways glance. He didn't look at her at all and seemed still a bit too tense for his disintered tone. "How would you know? Not having talked to him in years?"(edited) Izzy at 12:47 PM He shrugged. "People don't change that much. Can't think why he'd want to hurt Kheman." Jen at 12:51 PM "Oh, I can think of a number." For one, to extort his brother, the probably most powerful criminal in Skyport, who Mishka had made business with. "It was Mishka who told me Pa is there. And he told me like he was inviting me to step into a fucking bear trap. There's no fucking way he's not involved." Izzy at 12:57 PM Fucking Mishka. Possessed by a demon and still managing to make Hansel's life difficult. He shifted uncomfortably, because she made a completely valid point, but he couldn't let Mishka take the fall for what he'd done. Wouldn't do to rescue him from Diva only to have Larkin shank him. "Y'know, thing about Mishka is, he has this way of talking where -- he always sounds like he's up to some shit, even when he's not. It's a real problem for him." Moreso for Hansel, usually. "The Eldath Sanctuary's a safe place. Your dad'll be fine there." He glanced her way. She had to believe this. "If Mishka sent him there it was ... He was trying to do a good thing." Jen at 1:02 PM Larkin tilted her head at him and thought that over for a moment. "You know, for someone who's got his son poisoned by the guy, you got a damn high opinion of him." She didn't know what it was between Hansel and Haeth. Somehow, they'd worked together but never really gotten to talk. Not that it had bothered Larkin. It just seemed, she'd missed some important things. "Or maybe, because," she muttered, more to herself. "Fucker deserved it." Izzy at 1:09 PM "Yeah, well." Hansel wondered if it was worse that he was still protective of Mishka, or of Jonn. Neither one reflected well on him as a person. "Probably." He sighed. "Look, Mishka's not that bad. I found out he was never gonna let Jonn die, anyway. He's not a murderer. He's just got this face that begs punching." Jen at 1:27 PM He's not a murderer. Larkin almost laughed but caught herself and it came out as a huff of air. She abandoned her relaxed position to straighten up, eyes fixed on Hansel. Something was off and she wasn't quite convinced it was only some leftover love he still felt for his ex husband. Who he supposedly hadn't talked to in years. "Had," Larkin said. "He's Diva's puppet now, remember? If he weren't, he'd have had a lot more coming for him than just a punching. My dad's brother doesn't like anyone fucking with his family." If Mishka sent him there... how would you know? "Or keeping information from him."(edited) Izzy at 1:37 PM Great. This was going to be a whole other problem. Maybe once Larkin and her uncle found out about him, they'd forget Mishka had been involved at all. Or maybe Diva would just kill them all. That would certainly make things easier. Hansel sighed again. "Y'know, Larkin." Fuck it. "Here's the thing. I'm a real bad fuckin' liar. So I'm just gonna tell you this." He kept his eyes on the horizon. "I have been talking to Mishka, before this whole fucking thing happened -- we hadn't talked for two years but -- look, that's not the important thing, you don't care about that. "Your dad and I, we were on this ship, after Mishka left. And -- shit went bad. Everyone fucking died. But me." His fingers drummed on the wheel. Red sky at dawn. Blood in the water. Stay calm. "That's what I thought. Mishka told me that Kheman survived, and -- apparently Kheman sought him out for help, I guess, and Mishka sent him to the Sanctuary. I haven't -- I haven't been to see him yet. I dunno if he's all right." He cut his eyes towards her for a second, then away. "That's all the fuckin' information. Mishka doesn't know shit." Jen at 2:04 PM She had to take a moment to process that. Listening, she tensed, nails digging into the wood of the railing. Trying to keep her face still. Well, she had suspected Hansel didn't tell her everything. That he lied about something. For some reason, he was trying to protect Haeth, even now that he was the plaything of some damn demon bitch. Like he thought, somehow she would let go of him eventually. Hansel had surprised her. Fuck. This was unexpected and Larkin didn't know how to deal with it yet. She bit the insides of her cheeks and forced herself to take on a relaxed stance again, despite the anger she felt rising in herself. This so-called team mate of hers who had known something happened to her father but didn't say anything just to protetec Mikhail fucking Haeth. She let the silence hang for another moment, then said, "Mishka's dead." And turned to leave the quarterdeck. Izzy at 2:07 PM "Hey, what the fuck?" Hansel started after her, remembering he was tethered to the wheel a little late but just managing to catch her arm and keep his other hand on it. "Mishka doesn't have shit to do with your dad, all right. You got a fuckin' problem, you can take it up with me." Jen at 2:27 PM Larkin felt the grip tighten and the tug on her arm. The reflexes she'd so painfully aquired over the years kicked in. She spund around, twisting her elbow in and breaking Hansel's grip on her arm. She snapped it forward, striking bone to his chest. Her other hand came in, fist clenched as if to punch his face but she stopped it short from connecting, the blade in her hand pressed against his neck. "Yeah, I got a fucking problem, Hansel," she said and it sounded more like a snarl. "And I'm gonna take it up with whoever the fuck I have to." She yanked the blade away and took two quick steps out of reach. Izzy at 2:36 PM Huh. Well, he didn't know what he'd expected. That was what he got for acting without thinking. He took a step back from her, back to the wheel, keeping a close eye on her. She'd stopped, at least. And he was certainly distracted from the ocean now. "Yeah, all right, settle down," he said lowly. "I get it. You're protective of your dad. You just don't need to waste time on Mishka, for fuck's sake. I'm trying to fuckin' help, here." He wondered how she'd react when she found how how well he'd helped Kheman and rubbed his throat absently. "He'd be pretty fuckin' proud of you for that, y'know. Not taking my shit." Jen at 2:47 PM Larkin scoffed. She abandoned the fighting stance but kept the knife in her hand. "You're not trying to help me, you're trying to help Mishka. Whatever the fuck it is between you." She shook her head slightly. "Not gonna waste time on him, don't worry. What I meant was, he's already taken care of. You don't actually think that Diva bitch will ever let him go, do you?" Izzy at 2:55 PM Hansel's jaw tightened. He could say something cruel. Something about her father. How he preferred being at sea to being around her. How he'd never take her sailing. How he'd never be the same -- how Hansel had made sure of that. How he'd do worse if she kept fucking talking about Mishka. He looked away from her, tapping the wheel, watching the horizon. Clear skies. Clear seas. "Y'know your dad made us all celebrate your birthday every goddamn year when we were at sea? Made a cake and everything. Sorry he wasn't there to do it with you." Jen at 3:10 PM Oh, there it was. She'd finally hit the nerve and he'd cracked. But he'd delivered a damn good blow himself. Larkin fought for control of the grimace on her face and shaped it into a mean grin. Bared teeth and all. "Sure. Damn sorry you are." She finally slid the blade back up her sleeve. Her hands were trembling. She hid them inside her tabard. "Was nice talking to you, " she said." I hope you feel better now." And she turned around and walked down the stairs to the main deck.(edited) Izzy at 3:26 PM He still wanted to snap at her. Vicious fucking kid. But she hadn't deserved that. Kheman had been his friend, and they'd talked about their goddam kids together, how Larkin and Jonn were about the same age. Both ended up as knife-happy thieves, too. Fucking pirates. He didn't fucking feel better. "Larkin. Goddammit." He should stop talking. "I didn't mean -- fuck." Or come up with something better to say. "He cares about you. That's all I mean. I'm sure it's what got him through -- the thing we went through. That's more important than fuckin' revenge." She'd definitely remember him saying that, later. Shit. He sighed. "Look, do what you need to do. I won't try to stop you." He looked away again. Back to the sea. Lina, Last Thursday at 3:31 PM Larkin descended the steps to the main deck, but stopped midway when she noticed somebody standing below. Goro leaned against the door to the captain's quarters, arms crossed. He looked right at her, but raised his voice to call to Hansel. "You're right, Hansel. You aren't a very good liar." And he smiled. Izzy at 3:31 PM "Shut the fuck up, Goro." Jen at 3:44 PM That fucking guy. Larkin tilted her head at Goro, started to say something but stopped. Whatever it would've been, she didn't want to snark at him because Hansel had rubbed her the wrong way. She still felt like going back up the stairs and kicking him in the nuts until he got down to her height for a change but seeing Goro's stupid, smug, fake smile actually put her in a better mood She sighed, shook her head and walked down the rest of the stairs to where he stood. "Fucking hell, man. Can't wait to get off this damned ship."(edited) Lina at 3:46 PM Goro's smile faded. "And see your father?" Jen at 3:48 PM "So, you been listening in, huh?" She nodded at the general direction of away-from-the-quarterdeck and started moving.(edited) Lina at 3:52 PM He didn't follow. He cleared his throat and reached for the door handle to the captain's quarters. "Just, ah, just the tail end. I've got something to take care of. I'll catch up with you later." He opened the door and slipped inside. Jen at 3:58 PM She stopped after two stes and looked after him, puzzled. "Uhm, sure. Whatever." The door closed and Larkin was out of people she'd be willing to talk to. She looked out across the water once more, feeling even worse than before. This is what came of fucking talking. She glance up at the rigging overhead casting swaying shadows onto the deck. She decided the crow's nest would be a good place to hang out now. END Category:Text Roleplay